


Accident

by Mega_Erofan



Category: Shin Sangokumusou | Dynasty Warriors
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Car Accidents, Coming of Age, Feels and fluff abound, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Past Character Death, Past Relationship(s), Romance, de ja vu, for Liao at least, sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-30
Updated: 2014-08-30
Packaged: 2018-02-15 08:50:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2222910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mega_Erofan/pseuds/Mega_Erofan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An innocent drive on the back roads in the middle of a rainy night seems like nothing to a group of six friends but after a bad crash that should have killed all of them, bad memories are stirred and a simple miracle is explained as the work of a guardian angel. Past Lu Bu/Zhang Liao, established Xiahou Dun/Zhang Liao.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Accident

Pain. That is all Dun can register at that moment in time. The strong wave of pain consuming him from what just happened. His vision is black, his head throbs in pain, and his body is sore all over. What exactly happened just moments before is a blur to him but through all the confusion and pain bouncing around in his mind, one thought does make itself prominent. He just survived a crash. As he tries to open his eyes, he manages to pull together some of the bits of memory he can recall just before blacking out from the impact.

Dun and some of his friends, including his boyfriend of two years, three cousins, and his best friend of five years, were hanging out at his oldest cousin's house when someone decided to volunteer the idea of a late night ride around their hometown. At the time, it seemed like a good idea as well as a good opportunity to try out his cousin's paintball gun in a nearby neighborhood but the plan itself was ruined by a few factors no one really considered until possibly moments before all this happened. They never considered that it would start to rain halfway through their shenanigans and force them to drive back home nor did they think that taking the back roads home would not be the safest route. Even more, no one suspected that Dun's truck, the oldest but roomiest of the vehicles the group had access to at the time, would choose this night to have brake trouble for the first time in it's existence. The few moments before the crash went by so quick but Dun could remember them well enough that it felt like forever before the crash cut it off so suddenly.

~~

Dun rolls his eyes and chuckles under his breath as he tries to focus on the road ahead, paying no mind to the noisy passengers in his back seat, his cousins: Cao Cao, Cao Ren, and Xiahou Yuan, and his best friend since middle school, Xu Huang, as they went on about a topic they have been discussing since they decided to return home due to the sudden downpour cutting off their paintball hi-jinks. And what else would a bunch of young men discuss in a car on a late night? Any other group would have talked about girls or violent video games but Dun knows his cousins and friend too well. The topic is a recent horror movie they all planned to go see next month and his oldest cousin, Cao, could not stop talking about it. And if there is anything that can get Cao going more than war games, it is horror movies.

“I'm not sure about _that_.” Ren chuckles as he sits back in his seat, simply looking on as his older, more talkative cousin continues from where the other had cut him off.

“I've done the research on it, Ren.” Cao scoffs as he turns to look at his oldest of his younger cousins over his shoulder. “People are giving all kinds of praise to this film. It's supposed to be the _Nightmare On Elm Street_ of the modern era.”

“You mean a complete flop?” Huang states as he glances up from his phone to look at the other with a smug smirk then chuckles as the other glares at him venomously. “What? We all agreed before that the remake they did for that movie was terrible. 'They may as well have turned the movie into a musical.' Those were your words to a point.”

“I don't mean _that one_ , Huang.” Cao argues. “I mean the classic one, the first of its kind. When Freddy was still Freddy and people still feared him because he was among the iconic horror figures, along with Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, and Chucky.”

“Chucky was more of a '90s horror icon and Michael first appeared in horror in '78.” Huang corrects as he returns his gaze to his phone. “Get your facts straight before you go on about your classics, Cao.”

“Technically, Myers was prominent in the '80s and '90s, Huang.” Liao corrects from the front passenger seat. “So he's mostly correct there but ideally, the '70s is where horror began while the '90s was when it was more prominent. The '80s was simply an in-between to build up the fame horror has gained today, even if it is slowly losing it now to action, fantasy, and sci-fi films.”

“Smartass...” Huang chuckles.

“I might be a smartass but I'm a correct and factual one” Liao states as he glances over his shoulder at the passengers “and you can't hate me for that.”

“No, we can't hate you because your boyfriend would kick our asses on the spot.” Cao corrects, poking his head between the front seats and looking at his younger cousin sitting in the driver's seat.

“Indeed, I would, now get back in your seat before a cop sees you, you monkey.” Dun adds, glancing at Cao then roughly pushing the other back to sit in his seat then looking up at the three older men through his rear view mirror. “You might be older than me, Cao, but I can still kick your asses hard enough to leave you, Ren, and Huang with concussions.”

“Don't remind them.” Yuan sighs with a light chuckle. “Last time you did that, they had headaches the entire weekend.”

“Well, hopefully they learned something from that whole experience.” Dun chuckles. “After all, I didn't act alone on that brawl, Yuan.”

“I only helped because it was one against three.” Yuan argues.

“Yeah, you filled the spot for the other two by sitting on me and Ren while Cao and Dun wrestled about for ten minutes.” Huang states. “Any longer and I think I would've suffocated.”

“It wasn't that bad.” Ren chuckles.

“You weren't on the bottom of the pile.”

Everyone snickers from the comment. Despite how the six could butt heads a lot, especially since Dun started dating Liao, they all still managed to get along. Dun recalls how they were not too happy to hear the news about him dating Liao two years ago and how insanely furious Cao was. Long story short, Liao used to date one of Cao's school rivals and things were never fine between the two but Cao endured the other, if only to appease his younger cousin.

“Perhaps next time I'll jump in and make it a bit more fair.” Liao chuckles. “I might be the youngest in the group but I can stand my ground as well as you all can.”

“Despite the fact you bruise like a peach?” Ren teases.

“I might bruise easily but I could probably break your jaw in a heartbeat, Ren,” Liao states as his hand wanders to grab Dun's arm “while Dun uses that killer kick of his to ensure you never reproduce in the near future.”

Dun simply chuckles along with the others, letting his one hand slip from the wheel to capture Liao's hand. It is funny how they have been dating for almost three years but it feels like he has known the other for much longer, almost to the point where they could speak without words. He did not mind though because this is the best relationship he has had in years.

After his brutal break up with his last girlfriend, he swore off women all together, saying they were too complicated and that it would be easier to date a guy. His friends and close family knew he was bisexual, ever since he came out his first year of high school but he never really acted on his attraction towards guys until Liao came into his life. He never regretted a moment of it and was almost ecstatic when Liao accepted being his boyfriend when he asked. He could not blame him though for being so ready for a relationship to cling to given the troubles he went through before meeting Dun. He dare not think of them now as he hated thinking of how upset those days made Liao whenever his mind managed to wander to them but he was always there for him. The others seemed to understand too after a while, aside from Cao who never really seemed to care in the first place, and they always gave the two space if Liao ever started lamenting. It would take Dun a few minutes to coax the other back to the present before continuing on with their day. It seldom happened now but during their first few months together, it seemed to relapse every week but being around Dun and the others seemed to help it. That was why Liao was with them tonight after all.

He glances out of the corner of his eye to check on Liao, catching him staring out the window into the rainy night, an obvious sadness looming in those bright, hazel eyes he always adored. Their warmth, when it is more prominent, can melt the coldest of hearts and they are why Dun began slowly falling in love with him all those months ago.

It started out so innocently, it almost felt like a middle school crush to Dun at the time as he tried to remain friendly around Liao without letting his developing feelings show too much. Those eyes of Liao's were what caused him to slowly show it once they developed so deep that even he could not persuade himself that he was not in love with the other. After a few months, shortly after finishing their sophomore year, Dun decided to confront Liao about his feelings and had discovered the other had developed feelings of his own. A relationship was impossible to avoid at that point but he was still pleased the other accepted nonetheless. He was always pleased to see those almost-golden orbs glow upon seeing him and he hardly ever saw the sheen of sadness that they now wear. He only ever saw that shadow cast over Liao's eyes when he was thinking back on those days, when he would start lamenting.

Dun gently squeezes the hand in his own, catching Liao's attention as he glances at him then flashes a weak but warm smile, letting the other know he would be okay. Dun returns the smile and returns his gaze to the road, catching a glimpse of the time as his eyes trail over the orange glow of the clock in the dashboard: 10:05 pm. Being soon-to-graduate seniors, their parents did not mind them being out so late, wanting to enjoy their freedom before starting college the coming fall, but even he can feel the fatigue of the others in the vehicle and he knows none of them would enjoy sleeping in the truck. He glances at his rear view mirror, chuckling when he notices Huang and Yuan have already fallen asleep while Cao and Ren just barely manage to keep their heads upright.

“I best hurry us home before everyone else starts nodding off.” He chuckles, pushing on the gas a bit harder to hurry his truck along the dark back road “because I'm not carrying a bunch of grown men to bed this late at night.”

“I don't blame you there.” Liao murmurs, suppressing a yawn that tries to weasel into his sentence. “It would take all of us to carry Ren alone.”

“And you need to sleep too.” Dun adds with a soft chuckle. “I know you aren't very comfortable falling asleep on the road, so I'll try to get us home as quickly as possible.”

“Alright, just...be careful,” Liao warns “the last thing any of us needs is to crash out here.”

“We'll be fine, Liao.” Dun sighs. “This old truck hasn't failed on me yet and no rain is going to change that.”

“If you say so...”

Dun slips his hand from the now-weak grip of the other as he returns his view to the road, feeling fatigue begin to blur his vision but doing his best not to fall asleep at the wheel. After a few minutes, his gaze wanders back to Liao, who seems to barely cling to consciousness as his eyes flutter open and closed, fighting away sleep until there were at least clear of the road. He could not blame him for it, especially after everything he had been through the days before they officially met. His gaze shifts back the road, just in time to see a deer has stopped in the middle of the road. He swerves around the deer, jolting himself and possibly the other passengers from their sleepy states, then tries to brake, only to find his truck refuses to stop. The only thing he remembers is looking out his windshield and finding his truck careening to a ditch with only one thought passing through his mind.

“This is going to hurt...”

~~

The smashing of glass and crushing of metal are all he needed to recall hearing after that thought in order to deduce what had occurred. The truck went nose first into the deep ditch. He was thrown from the truck through the shattered windshield and now laid on the ground, the cold rain not helping the overall ache that ran through his body. Only then did he think about the others who were in the truck with him.

He musters enough strength to roll over and peek out of his right eye, the other having been injured in the crash as he cannot seem to open it to see out of it. From his limited view from the ground several feet away, he can make out the blurred, silver shape of the truck just a few feet away. The truck landed in the ditch in such a way that only the roof of the truck can be seen and a bit of the front seats. He tries to focus his vision, hoping to find he was the only one thrown from the vehicle but is horrified to find that Liao is not in the passenger seat.

He tries to climb to his feet to search but finds himself unable to move as immense pain ripples through his entire body. Apparently, flying through a shattered windshield at just over forty miles per hour is not exactly a pain-free experience. Through all the pain pulsating through him and the muffled echo of rain around him, a voice seems to call out to him. He cannot pinpoint exactly where the voice is coming from or how close the person is but it is impossible to confuse it for any other. It is Liao's voice.

Liao, having been flung safely from the car when the windshield shattered on impact and landing a few feet from the truck with little injury aside from a hurt shoulder and possible concussion, he manages to sit up and look around. Though still dazed from the crash, he does manage to make out a few things from the crash site. No one else was flung from the vehicle, hearing the others groan over the echo of rain and the hiss of the dying truck's engine. They were safe, for the most part. His focus then goes to the driver seat, which is just barely visible from where he sits, and discovers Dun is no longer in the truck. He had been launched out, just like him. He hysterically looks around, hoping the other is not hurt badly from the crash and his eyes soon fall upon a crumpled form a few feet away, between him and the trashed truck.

“Dun?” He softly calls out as he attempts to stand, feeling the world spin as he does but supporting himself just enough to force himself to limp towards the other, having hurt his leg as well in the crash. The lack of response or movement from the other terrifies him and he picks up pace, calling out to the other as he approaches. “Dun! Dun!” He manages to collapse just close enough to the other to drag himself up beside him and roll the other into his lap. Aside from the defiant cut on his left eye, he is surprisingly unharmed. “Dun, wake up, please.” He shakes the man but still no response from him. “Dun, please, don't do this to me. Not tonight of all nights. Please!” He is almost in tears as he hugs the man against him. “I don't want to have to relieve this again...”

~~

The day after was one of the hardest in his entire life. Everyone seemed to know about what happened by the time he got to school the next day. It did not help that he was sporting a broken arm from the incident, broadcasting to everyone that he had been there when it happened. Many asked him about it or tried to comfort him but he turned them away, he wanted to forget about the night even if it meant forcing it out of his memory. As the day progressed, the pain never got any better, so by the time his last class of the day started, he was already about to walk out and never come back.

Until he came into his life for the first time.

His last class, a photography class he was taking as part of his high school career path, was spending the day outside and gave him enough of an excuse to get away from the others to be on his own. With his better arm sealed up in plaster for the next month or so, he would be no good at taking pictures, so the teacher simply let him use the class as an unwinding period until he regained the ability to use his arm again, understanding what he was going through at the time. He managed to find a peaceful spot away from his classmates, a small bench closer to the school but not out of sight of the class, but found himself surprised by the flash of a camera a few minutes later. He looks up and finds himself looking at one of the older students from his class. The combination of night black hair and grass green eyes catch Liao's attention for a moment as the warm, simple smile seems to be the icing on the cake. He did not know the other too well, only knowing his name from the roll call the teacher always conducted before and after each class: Xiahou Dun. His eyes fall away and his cheeks grow warm in embarrassment, having not realized he was staring at the other longer than needed. He only looks up again when he feels the other sit next to him.

“Shouldn't you be doing the assignment like everyone else?” Liao asks. It is the only question that comes to mind as every other thought process seems to have abandoned him.

“I always finish quicker than everyone else when it comes to this class.” Dun states. “Mr. Woo says I have a natural talent for it but I'm just well-practiced.” Seeming to feel the awkward aura between then, the older male places a gentle hand on the shoulder of Liao's broken arm, catching the other's attention. “You seem a bit more somber than usual, is something wrong?”

“...So you've not heard yet?” Liao murmurs, his eyes falling to the ground as he fights back the tears that have been threatening to spill out all day.

“Heard what?”

“About the accident over the past weekend...”

“The wreck on Taoshu road? I heard about it on the news this morning before coming to school but I only caught a bit of it before walking out the door.” Dun sighs, sitting back against the bench as he lets the camera hang off his neck. “Something about how there was only one casualty of the crash, someone from our school. Said it was pure luck that the other guy survived with only scrapes and bruises, a broken arm at worst. Why is that so...”

Dun stops himself, glancing at Liao as the other turns away, seeming to realize something as he gently grabs the other's shoulder. Liao flinches from the pressure but refuses to turn around. “You were involved in that crash...weren't you?” Liao can only manage a simple nod as he sniffles. “Liao...”

Dun quickly rises from the bench and kneels on the ground before Liao, noticing the sorrowful tears building in the other's hazel eyes, though the other refused to look at him. “You're the one who survived that crash.” Liao softly sobs as the other cups his cheeks in his hand. “Liao, look at me.” The other hesitantly complies, gazing at the other with tearful, almost-golden eyes. “You're Lu Bu's boyfriend.”

“I was...” Liao murmurs “until last night, I was.” He sobs loudly, unable to hold back the grief as hot tears spill and he completely breaks down.

Dun gently but quickly pulls the other into an embrace, letting him sit on his lap as the other clings to him with his one good arm and cries into his shoulder. He glances up at the sight of movement from the corner of his eye, noticing the class staring at the two of them but pays them no mind as he holds the upset male now shaking in his arms.

He was the first one to give him the kind of comfort he really needed at the time, a shoulder to cry on when the one formally in his place was now gone. It did not make the recovery any quicker but it helped. Dun gave him reason to return to school the next day and each day after that, from helping with his school work to pulling him away from the class when it seemed he was about to cry. He was always there for him from that point on, helping him every step of the way. Those months made accepting his late boyfriend's demise a lot easier as he quickly began developing feelings for Dun. He never thought the other had come to love him as well, much less that he would accept his feelings and eventually ask him the question he only dreamed of being asked by the same man. Everything seemed to get a lot better after that day. He was recovering quicker from the accident but on the anniversary of his death, Liao would always be reminded of it but Dun was always there to help him. Soon enough, his cousins and Xu Huang started helping as well, getting him out of the house for one reason or another, helping him understand what it was like to live again and he never regretted it.

Until now at least...

~~

“Please...” Liao is visibly shaking as he holds Dun close to him, hoping to any god above that he has not lost him, that he still had a fighting chance, something Lu Bu never had.

The vivid bang of metal against metal startles Liao, causing him to look up as Ren climbs out from the back seat of the wrecked trunk, stumbling slightly as he falls onto the top of the ditch's slope. He turns and carefully helps Yuan out. The two exchange quick words before Yuan leaps across the ditch, just barely avoiding slipping into it when he kneels upon touchdown. He scrambles up to level ground, only then spotting Liao and rushing to his side.

“Liao, are you alright?” He asks, sliding on his knees across the wet grass and just barely avoiding crashing into the other.

“I...I'm fine...” Liao manages to whimper, his gaze falling back to the man in his arms. “But Dun...I'm not sure if he's...” He lets out a shaky breath.

Yuan reaches for Dun's neck, searching for something, and eventually lets out a sigh of relief as his hand drops. “He's fine...his pulse is strong and he's breathing.” Yuan murmurs. “Are either of you hurt badly?”

“I'm fine...my shoulder's just a bit sore and I...think I pulled something in my leg...but I'll be fine.” Liao says through shaky breaths, obviously still shaken from the crash. “And the cut is the worst I've seen on Dun...but I can't be too sure.” He looks up toward the crash again, spotting Huang as Ren helps him out of the truck then climbs in himself. Hua's phone glowing in the darkness around him as he calls for help. Ren emerges from the wrecked truck a few seconds later with an unconscious but visibly unharmed Cao in his arms. The two quickly hurry to join the others with news that help will arrive within a few minutes.

It was a miracle they survived the crash, at least that is what the doctors told them after they were cleared of any serious injury aside from Dun's injured eye. Despite being advised of their clearance to return home, the others did not want to leave until they knew Dun would be alright. They were on shifts through the rest of the night with Liao perched at Dun's bedside while the other four rotated in shifts of two outside the room in case Liao fell asleep, the other two waiting in the lobby for their parents to arrive. It was while Cao and Ren are on shift outside Dun's room for the second time that night that the first words are spoken since they arrived at the hospital a few hours earlier.

“They said we should've died in that crash.” Cao murmurs. Ren glances at his older cousin questionably. “That's what the doctors told all of us. Given the condition of the road, the truck's brake failure, our severe lack of safety belts, and how we were tossed about like ragdolls in such a small space at high speed, we really should've died on that road tonight. So why didn't we?”

“I'm not sure.” Ren sighs, watching through the window into Dun's room as Liao seems close to falling asleep at the other's bedside. “It might have been simply a miracle. We need to be thankful for that instead of questioning it.”

“I feel like it's more than that though. We probably were supposed to die out there tonight but...something prevented it. At the very least, from what I've heard, Dun should've been killed on impact or at least have broken a bone but he came out with only that scratch on his eye. Same with Liao considering he was thrown further from the truck but only hurt his leg and shoulder. And the four of us in the back should have at least broken something but our worst injury was Yuan's mild concussion and my sprained wrist.” Cao elaborates, looking at Ren as the other looks back. “You want to explain _that_ and still say it was simply a miracle?”

“I'm not an expert in that stuff, you know that.” Ren states. “Besides, I thought you weren't one to believe in other worldly phenomenon, that you're too logical for that stuff.”

“Normally, yes...but tonight might have changed that for me.” Cao murmurs, turning to lean against the wall beside Dun's room door. He stares at the ground for a few moments before speaking again. “Have you ever heard of guardian angels, Ren?”

“What importance does that have right now?”

“More than you know...now just answer the question.”

“Yeah, haven't we all?” Ren sighs. “It's something our parents tell us as kids to help up move one from the passing of a relative. Why does it matter?”

“Because I think our survival tonight was a bit more than a miracle.”

“What do you...” Ren stops when he looks up, finding Cao is not staring at the floor but at an aged clipping from a newspaper. He recognizes the headline and sadly smiles as he looks up at Cao. “You held onto that after all?”

“Yeah” Cao sighs “I never knew why...and I understand the reason I kept it now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Because...” Cao holds out the clipping for Ren to see, watching his expression morph from confusion to utter shock. “The spot where we crashed is the same spot where he died, three years ago to the day. That can't be just a coincidence.”

“So you mean...” Ren trails off as Cao nods “but why? You two hated each other to such a degree that he busted your nose in one of the fights you two had. Why would he save us if it meant sparring you, the guy he absolutely despised while he was alive?”

“Because he was looking after two of us last night.” Cao explains then turns to look in through the window. “The four of us just happened to be there in order to call for help and keep him from a complete mental breakdown.”

“I guess that makes sense...” Ren murmurs “but it's kind of odd that we managed to crash at that same spot. It wasn't even on the back road we usually take home. How did Dun manage to pull that off?”

“I'm not sure...” Cao sighs “but I've learned a couple of things tonight, Ren.” Ren hums curiously as he glances at Cao. “I've learned what true fear actually feels like. Not only did we almost lose our own lives but I almost lost the closest friend I have.” Cao lets out a shaky breath as he wipes away a tear that manages to escape him. “I never felt so helpless in my life. I know all too well now how Liao felt that night three years ago...and I wouldn't wish that upon anyone else.”

“You're saying you're starting to care about Liao?”

“Maybe...or maybe it's just the concussion I received from the crash.” Cao grumbles as he rubs the back of his head.

“I hope not,” Ren replies with a light chuckle “you two need to start getting along anyway. After tonight, I'm not sure Liao will be mentally okay for a while. He's gonna need all of us to get over this night and that includes you.”

“I know.” Cao murmurs, handing the clipping to Ren as he pushes himself off the wall. “I'm gonna go talk to him. Keep an eye out for Yuan and Huang when we change shifts, okay?”

“Yes sir...”

Ren watches as Cao quietly enters the room then watches through the glass as Cao approaches Liao, seeming to stir him from the light nap he was having before being engaged by Cao. Ren softly sighs under his breath as his gaze falls to the clipping in his hand, his eyes landing on the bold letters on the headline:

Motorcycle Accident Claims One But Spares Another

His eyes wander to the pictures below the headline, his thumb lightly tapping under the portrait of a face he knew too well, a face no one would ever see again except in memory. He smiles sadly as a single tear escapes him.

“You always have been protective over him, Lu Bu.” Ren whispers then looks up at the window, surprised and relieved to find his cousin embracing the smaller, shaking form of Liao. “Guess you kept us all alive for a reason...for his sake.” His gaze falls back to the portrait, swearing that he sees the portrait looking back at him. He puts it off as his fatigue and watering eyes playing tricks on him but smiles again nonetheless. “Thanks...you won't regret this.”

**Author's Note:**

> I simply had to put these two together again even if I hurt my feels in the process. ;w;
> 
> Also, if someone can recommend a better headline for the clipping in the story, let me know. It will be much appreciated.


End file.
